North Star
by jstar1382
Summary: Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon
1. The Plan

_A/N: Thanks to ScribbleAStory for the the cover art!_

 _Also thanks to my lovely friend Evan Petruzzi for inspiring the title for this fic. Check out her music on itunes. It's all kinds of fab!_

 _Jo- super!beta. Seriously you are all sorts of wonderful xoxo_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

 ** _North Star_**

* * *

 _Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon_

* * *

 **Chapter 1**

Taxi horns and music blared along 42nd street during the heart of the lunch hour rush. Kate Beckett took a long sip from her midday latte before leaning down to adjust her brand new Christian Louboutin peep toe pumps and straightening her skirt. She was ready for her staff meeting today, but glaringly absent from the office was her best friend. The same friend who was just dumped by her latest flavor of the week turned true love. The same friend who was now an emotional wreck and who refused to leave her apartment.

So now instead of prepping how she would pitch her new story idea to the magazine's editor Victoria Gates, she was on her way to be a supportive friend to make sure Maddie didn't get fired the same week she'd been dumped.

Oh, Maddie _so_ owed her big time.

On the way to her friend's apartment, she walked by the newsstand which happened to have the latest issue of _North Star_ prominently displayed at the eye line of those passing by. She sighed to herself, seeing Richard Castle's picture washed across the glossy cover. Her first cover article and it wasn't anything but a puff piece for an author's latest novel. It wasn't for _anything_ she was passionate about. Hell, it wasn't even for her typical self-help column.

No, this article and this interview was handed to her by her editor with a back handed comment of 'I'm sure you'll be his type.' So much for proving herself to her boss so she could write about something real.

Something _meaningful_.

She'd fallen into the role of 'Kate Beckett , self-help girl', but it wasn't where her heart was or where she had imagined her career when she became a journalism major. Part of her had wanted to follow in her parents' footsteps and become a lawyer, but after her mother had been murdered the idea of practicing law had lost its appeal. Dreams had shifted and plans had changed, and Kate's goal of becoming the next Supreme Court Justice had morphed into becoming a modern day Lois Lane.

Kate had decided to be an investigative journalist. She wanted to unearth all the government corruption and other issues that really mattered in the world. To break stories that really _mattered_ …

Instead, out of college when the job market was at its bleakest, she'd landed a job at _North Star_. It was a great job and she was incredibly lucky to have found it when so many of her friends were still struggling to find work, but it wasn't her passion. She wasn't respected as a reputable journalist and would be even less so now that she was interviewing playboy celebrity authors.

It didn't matter that he happened to write the books that were her favorite guilty pleasures. Nor did it matter that he was just as good looking and charming in person as he appeared to be in his public appearances. She wouldn't be continuing into this line of journalism, nor would she be falling for Rick Castle's blatant attempts at flirting with her. Holding back a smile at the memory of that day, she continued toward Madison's apartment and thought about today's meeting.

She was going to earn some respect in her career and she would demand Gates let her write a serious piece for the magazine. There was a Senator out of New York who seemed to have ties to a drug ring in the area. She planned to pitch her idea today at their staff meeting. That was if she could manage to get Maddie to the meeting on time.

* * *

After making a quick stop to pick up another vanilla latte for her friend, Kate arrived at Madison's place with twenty minutes to get her out the door and back to the office. It would be tight, but hopefully her post-breakup state wasn't as bad as last time.

"Becks? What are you—?" the blonde asked, shooting her a stunned expression as Kate pushed her way into the apartment. She sighed at the sight of her place in complete disarray. This was a disaster. Maybe she should've brought their mutual friend, Lanie, along for back up.

"I'm not going to let you lose your job over some guy, Mads." Kate walked through the room and started to pick up all of the random take out cartons and tissues that her friend littered the space with. She truly was a mess when it came to relationships; always falling too hard, too quick.

"He wasn't just some guy. Mike was my soul mate."

"I thought John was your soul mate?" Kate joked, earning her a glare from Maddie as she flung herself onto the couch.

"Hardly. I didn't know what true love was before Mike," Maddie whimpered. Rolling her eyes at the dramatics her friend displayed, Kate pulled her up off of the couch and directed her toward her room to get ready.

"And how long did you know Mike?" she asked with a smirk.

"A week, but seriously Becks… we had a _connection_. It was instant. It was beautiful… and now it's gone…"

"Mmhmm. All guys are the same."

Kate rummaged through the closet and threw together an outfit so her friend could look somewhat presentable for the meeting.

"He said he loved me!"

"Was that before or after you lent him five hundred dollars?" she asked, giving her a knowing look as Maddie sat down on the foot of the bed pulling her knees into her chest.

"After, but that's hardly the point. I felt it too. It was true love."

Kate bit down on her tongue to hold in the laugh at her friend's completely predictable behavior. She felt bad, but it was a never ending cycle.

"Maddie, he dumped you the next day. Proof that you can't fall in love with someone that quickly. A week? You need to protect yourself…"

"Not everyone needs to walk around life as closed off as you," she snapped.

"Well that was a bit low…"

Maddie grabbed her arm and tug her down on the bed next to her. The words were harsh, but not unfounded. "Becks, I'm just saying… being open to the idea of love isn't a bad thing."

"No offense," she said, nudging her friend toward the floor length mirror. "Look at yourself. How is this _not_ a bad thing?"

She watched Maddie shake her head and look back at her. "You've never been in love. All the happiness, all those moments are worth the pain and heartbreak..."

"I've never wanted to be in love. I don't have time with our job."

"You can have both. Look at me. Successful career and I've been in love countless times."

Countless times. With Maddie love was so fleeting. Here today and gone tomorrow. Kate didn't want anything like that.

"I love you, Maddie, I do, but you are not the poster child for love. You could barely get out of bed today and I have to be here to drag you to work," she teased. With a small smile, Madison grabbed her clothes off of the bed and walked to the en suite bathroom to get ready.

"Because I lost the love of my life so I'm in mourning, but…" she called from behind the door.

"But?"

"There's always tomorrow…"

The optimistic tone in her friend's voice was inspiring to say the least, but Kate had always been more of a realist. She couldn't imagine anything would be worth leaving yourself open to pain. Everyday life was full with enough of that.

"Let's get you to the office, before tomorrow is the day we're both out of a job," Kate said with a small laugh. While Maddie finished up getting dressed, Kate walked around the kitchen and living room trying to clean up a little more. She found a stack of pictures that Madison had already printed of her and whatever his name. Of course, she'd never admit it, but they did look happy.

"You're so cynical, Kate. Look at me, I'm heartbroken, but I still believe in love," Maddie murmured, her presence in the room surprising Kate to the point that she basically threw the pictures down onto the coffee table like she'd been burned by the images. Kate handed her a pair of heels to complete her outfit.

"It's not that I don't believe in love. You make me sound cold-hearted."

"When's the last time you went on a date?" Maddie asked, setting into the pair.

"I date a lot…" It wasn't like she was a recluse. She went out with Lanie and Madison all of the time, but she didn't bother going home with random guys like they tended to.

"And you're always the one to break it off. Have you ever been dumped?"

"Well…" she said, chewing on her lip. A guilty feeling fluttered in her stomach because her friend was right. She couldn't remember the last time she wasn't the one to end the 'would be' relationship.

"Oh God. You haven't, have you? Men fling themselves at you and yet you're willingly single," Maddie said, her mouth gaping open.

"Men do _not_ fling themselves at me. That's a gross exaggeration!"

"Becks, what did you say about Rick Castle?" she asked with a laugh.

Why did she ever mention that interview to her friends? Oh that's right, because as soon as it was over Lanie and Madison had pulled her into their offices to basically interrogate her.

"I said he was highly flirtatious, but that's just his personality, Madison. You've seen the tabloids, that man always has a girl on each arm," she said, rolling her eyes. He did seem like a nice guy though, but she wasn't giving Maddie anymore fuel to tease her with.

"Uh huh. I'm just saying that you have men, even celebrities, interested in you and I can't keep a man longer than a week. It's completely unfair."

"It's not like I'm magic or something. If I acted completely head over heels in a relationship, like you do, I'd be the one on the couch shoving my face full of chocolate. Men are all the same," she added, following her friend out of the door. At this rate, they might actually make it to their meeting on time.

"I bet you…" Madison stated, turning to look at her as they hailed a cab.

"Bet me what?"

"I bet you that no man would turn you down."

Kate couldn't hold her laughter back as they crowded into the backseat of the car.

"Maddie, if I acted clingy and said I loved a guy in a week—whether you believe it or not, he'd run just like John."

"Not _John_ … Mike!"

"John, Mike, Bryan? All the same," she joked. At this rate, she'd need Madison's dates to start wearing name tags if she wanted to her to keep up.

"You'll see, and I'll even pick the guy."

Wait, what was she getting herself into?

"So you're picking the guy and…" she paused before it dawned on her. This could work. "Wait a second… I could turn this into an article…"

"You're going to do a column on how no man would ever dump you?" Madison asked, groaning at the idea.

"No, I'll turn it into a self-help guide for woman like you. Helpless in love…"

"Thanks, Becks. Not at all insulting…"

"Not meant to be… I'll just point out all the typical clingy behavior that causes men to run for the hills," she explained, watching as a smile broke out on Madison's face.

"How to get a guy to break up with you?"

"We'll work on the title later, but basically yes. Maybe if I present Gates with an article like this, she'll let me go forward with the exposé about the politician I really want to publish."

"The article could work, Becks, but I'm still sticking with my theory. And I still want to pick the guy."

"Fine. I'll go with it if Gates likes the idea. Then we can brainstorm with some of your typical relationship behavior."

"Even though it's a good idea for an article, I'm still saying no guy would ever dump you. What happens to the story then?" she asked, poking her arm.

"It's not going to be an issue. All men are the same. I'll be out of his life in less than two weeks flat…"

"We'll see. You never know, Becks. Maybe you could find the one…"

Kate scoffed at the statement as they finally made it back to the magazine's offices. Find the _one_ while researching her article?

What were the odds of that _ever_ happening?

* * *

 _ **tbc**_

 _Thanks for reading! I would love to hear from you!_


	2. The Bet

_Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

 ** _North Star_**

* * *

 _Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon_

* * *

 **Chapter 2**

Richard Castle loved his life, and frankly, who wouldn't? He was rich and successful, basically living the American dream. Yet as amazing as his life was, he was in a slump. He'd written the same story about the same hero over and over and it had become tiring. So in a move that might prove to be a career ender, he decided to kill off his money making lead character.

His agent and publisher were in a panic over the entire situation, forcing him to sit for every interview or photo shoot opportunity they could get their hands on. It wasn't the worst thing, but it only enhanced his public image and the mask he had to show to the world to make his 'people' happy.

Earlier in the day, Paula, his agent, sent over a stack of the new _North Star_ issues that included his cover and interview. It just so happened that the delivery had to be made during his weekly video game night with his friends, Javier Esposito and Kevin Ryan. Two homicide cops that didn't so much care about Castle's fame and more so had become friends with him when he consulted on a case a couple years back.

The first _real_ friends that he'd had in years.

"Dude, Castle, how many more women's magazines is your agent going to plaster your face on?" His friend laughed and waved the print in his face. The attention was mildly embarrassing from them, but he didn't mind the phone calls.

"You mock, Espo, but you wouldn't believe the number of women that flock because of articles like this."

"Or the women that interview you," Ryan said with a smirk.

If only. Kate Beckett was a breath of fresh air, in the way that she could see right through his façade. She didn't seem overly happy to be conducting the interview in the first place, but that didn't stop him from trying to flirt. There was something about her…

"She was fascinating."

"Fascinating, but turned you down," Espo taunted.

"She didn't turn me down, because I didn't _actually_ ask her out."

He should've. Maybe he still could.

"Uh huh. Well maybe Little Miss Journalist isn't flocking at the moment, but any of the other girls—you could hook your friend up, you know?"

Castle laughed at Esposito's constant attempts at getting set up with his fan club groupies. It never ended well for him, but that didn't stop him from trying. Reaching over for his beer, Castle took a quick sip before he noticed the look of disgust on Ryan's face.

"What?"

"You two are sick. When was the last time either of you had a real relationship?" he asked, rolling his eyes at Castle and Esposito.

"Like how you're whipped with Jenny?" Ryan shoved his partner off of the couch as Castle shook his head at their antics.

"Kevin, you're forgetting I've been married twice," he reminded, setting down his video game controller after finally pausing the game.

"Yes, married twice and since then…"

"He's been sampling," Espo replied, for once coming to his defense.

"Sampling," he huffed.

"I'm not opposed to having a long term relationship."

Ryan and Esposito both turned toward him, staring at him stunned, before they howled with laughter. True, he hadn't exactly had a long term relationship recently, but his public image didn't necessarily lend itself to the one and done image. He was marketed as a ladies' man, even though that wasn't how he wanted to end up.

"Castle, you couldn't stay with any woman longer than two weeks."

"I'm offended by that. I could and would if it was the _right_ girl."

He needed someone to keep his interest and someone to challenge him; the bimbo groupies were only fun for a short while. Those types of women had a short shelf life.

"What are you guys talking about?" his daughter asked, walking into his office.

"Ryan was just making false accusations."

"Or accurate," Espo added. So much for his friends defending him.

"Oh really?" Great, just what he needed in this conversation; his daughter involved as his friends teased him. Alexis quirked her eyebrow at him and leaned against the couch's armrest.

"I said, your dad couldn't stay with one woman for longer than two weeks anymore."

Castle waited for an objection from his daughter, assuming at least she would come to his defense. All hope deflated from his system as he watched her nod from the corner of his eye.

"Well…"

" _Alexis!_ "

"Dad, I'm sorry, but Detective Ryan's right." She paused as he put his head in his hands in defeat. "I love you and all, but lately you don't seem like you're interested in ever settling down anymore. I'm a bit worried for when I go off to college. Who's going to take care of you then? The pageant girl you brought around last? Hardly," she scoffed and patted his back.

His head shot up as he forced a flash of mock objection across his face. She was right. Maybe his love life had gotten a little out of control. Fun, but maybe still out of control.

"I'd expect this from the guys, but you Alexis. This hurts."

"I just don't want you to end up alone, Dad."

He didn't want to end up alone either, but having the people that he cared about shoving the truth in his face was a little jarring to say the least.

"Yeah, we don't want you to end up alone, Dad," Esposito mimicked.

"I'm not going to end up alone," he said, reassuring her with a kiss on the cheek as she turned to leave the guys to themselves.

"Sure, Dad. I'll believe that when I see it," she called from over her shoulder as she walked away.

"It's great to know that my best friends and my own child have such little faith in me."

Ryan packed a handful of popcorn into his mouth and almost choked as his eyes lit up. Castle already knew that whatever his friend was thinking wouldn't end well for him.

"Fine," Ryan started. "Such little faith. Why don't you put your money where your mouth is?"

" _Oh_ , I like the sound of this!" Espo joined in.

"Put my money where my mouth is? This sounds like the beginning of a movie montage."

"Shhh." Ryan held up his hand and it took everything in him to not throw a handful of popcorn in his direction. "I bet you won't stay with the next girl you date for longer than two weeks. You won't even make it to two weeks."

"How shallow do you think I am?" Castle asked, instantly regretting the question by the expressions on his friends' faces.

"Extremely," Esposito declared. Castle waved him off and turned back to Ryan.

"So what's the bet?"

"Simple. You stay with your next flavor of the week for at least two weeks and you win," Ryan explained.

Easy enough. Two weeks wasn't that long to stay with someone and when it meant winning a bet, that was even more motivation to stay together. Though, the idea of betting over dating someone was a little caveman.

But he couldn't back down now.

"Break up with her before then and Ryan and I each get the Ferrari for a month along with you footing the bill for each of our next dates at the five star restaurant of our choice," Esposito continued.

"Okay… and if I win?"

"Pride?" Ryan guessed.

"Um no. How about you two actually let me follow you around for my book?" he asked, pausing to see his friends roll their eyes. "What? Following around some detectives would bring some authenticity to the book even though neither of you are anything like the hot female detective protagonist I'm writing."

"Where the hell did you get an idea like that?" his friend scoffed, turning toward Ryan and himself.

"From a TV show I watched once."

He could tell that neither one of them had the least bit of confidence in him actually winning the bet, or they would've pushed a little harder to not let him follow them at the precinct. Castle knew that on the one case he had consulted on he'd pushed a few too many buttons. It had been a surprise that they had become friends from that point on.

"Fine, with Captain Montgomery's approval."

"Whatever works. This will be the easiest bet ever," Castle said, conviction inserting itself into every syllable.

"Don't get cocky, Writer Boy."

"Yeah, after one date, you'll be itching to trade the girl in for someone new," Ryan joked.

"Not if she's the right girl."

"And where are you planning on finding Ms. Right?" Esposito asked, handing Castle his controller to restart their game.

"Tonight. I think we should go out and grab a drink. It's on me."

"Hey, bro, if you're buying, I'm game."

They turned to Ryan as he sat there in silence, fidgeting with his shirt.

"I have to ask, Jenny…" he mumbled.

"You have to ask?" Castle asked with his eyebrow raised in amusement. Ryan quickly cleared his throat and looked up at them.

"No—I meant, tell. I have to tell Jenny."

"Mmhmm," he said, smirking.

"Keep telling yourself that, Honey Milk."

"I'm never going to live that down, am I?"

" _Nope_ ," Castle and Esposito said in unison, finishing up their game of Madden.

* * *

Walking into the club, Kate had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. How in the world was this ever going to work? She was just supposed to lead a man on and make him think she was basically crazy? All for an article?

"I'm starting to have second thoughts about this, Madison," she said, dragging her feet near the coat check. Realizing that her friends continued to nudge her along and wouldn't quit, she surrendered her jacket to the attendant and sighed.

"Kate, it's the perfect idea," Lanie chimed in and pulled her toward the bar.

"Exactly. How more perfect could it get? _You_ get to benefit by making a mockery of my dating life in an article…" Kate rolled her eyes at her friends and ordered them all cocktails, yelling over the music. She turned back to see Madison was still talking about the flawlessness of her plan. "Luckily I don't embarrass easily and I'll get to prove that I'm right. No man would ever dump Kate Beckett," she shouted, reaching for her glass.

"It has to be believable," Kate grumbled, sipping her drink a little quicker than her norm.

"Oh it'll be believable." Madison laced her arm through hers trying to avoid spilling her drink, while Lanie bounced next to them.

"At least there are a decent number of fairly attractive candidates."

"This article needs to work." She sighed and downed the rest of her drink as her eyes scanned around the room.

"Don't worry, Kate. It'll work and then Gates will be happy with this fluff piece and you can go and write your article about hardened criminals," Lanie teased. "I swear, you should've just become a cop."

"Could you imagine? Kate Beckett, a cop?" Madison scoffed.

"It's not that unbelievable," Lanie defended.

"I'm perfectly happy being a journalist. Though, self-help girl is hopefully soon to be a thing of the past."

"All in due time, Becks."

"Let's hope." It was busier than usual for mid week. Hell, if she couldn't find a guy tonight, she should at least allow herself to have a good time. Closing her eyes for a moment, she let the effects of the music and alcohol take over her body. They danced in the crowd for awhile and she almost forgot why they were there in the first place, until she felt Madison tug on her arm.

"Oh and Becks?"

"Yeah?" she asked, turning toward the blonde. She groaned when she saw the look in her eyes.

"I have just the guy."

Madison turned her in the direction of the man she scoped out.

"You've got to be kidding me!"

The smug expression on her friends' faces was almost more than she could take, but she shook her head in defeat as a touch of excitement fluttered in her stomach.

* * *

Lounging back in the VIP area of the club, Castle tipped the waitress as she walked away from their table with their empty glasses. The guys were a couple rounds in and so far not one woman seemed to have that spark to him. Nothing worth even standing up for.

"I can already see myself driving your Ferrari, Castle. You might as well give us the keys now," Esposito taunted. They really wouldn't let this go. Not that he cared if his friends borrowed his car but he really wanted to be able to shadow them for the book. With a quick breath, he puffed confidence through his veins and shot back.

"Are you kidding me? I think you guys should start talking to Montgomery now. I'll be shadowing you before you know it." He chuckled to himself and sipped from his glass. Ryan didn't seem convinced as Esposito's focus drifted toward the crowd dancing on the floor.

"Just because you can hit on a woman, doesn't mean you're going to stay with them."

"Yeah well it also doesn't have to be someone here or someone tonight. The deal was the next girl I date," he reminded, sparking Esposito's interest.

"True but you can't suddenly become abstinent because—"

"I'm going to stop you right there. Me? Abstinent?" Castle asked, laughing into is glass.

"Good point."

"Yeah, but Castle. Quick hook ups won't win the bet—" Ryan added.

"There will be nothing quick about this. She will be romanced and falling in love by the time I'm done with her. This will be so easy, it'll be laughable." Maybe romanced and falling in love was a bit much, but the guys had been on his back all night. At this point, he'd buy them each a Ferrari to shut them up.

"Oh, so now you think you'll get the girl to fall in love."

"Castle, bro, you're just digging yourself into a bigger hole," Esposito said with a smirk.

"Not a hole, because I know my abilities with women." The words were filled with false confidence. He loved women, but could any woman love Rick anymore? And not Rick _Castle_?

"We'll see. So go ahead, Romeo."

Castle took another sip of his scotch. He'd barely sat the glass down on the table when he saw her across the bar dancing with a couple other girls. Any fleeting insecurities he had about this bet were entirely washed away as he noticed the blonde in the group turn toward where he and the boys were seated.

"Hate to break it to you guys, but you're done for."

"Apparently so are you," Ryan said with a smirk as Castle ignored further jabs and walked into the mass of people.

"Kate Beckett," he said, reaching for her hand and raising it to his lips.

"Rick Castle." A teasing sparkle danced in her eyes while his attention was drawn to her mouth and the cute way she chewed on her bottom lip. It was _hypnotic_. Silence hung in the air for longer than deemed acceptable by common social standards.

Of all nights.

Of all people.

He was lucky enough to run into the one woman he couldn't stop thinking about since he met her. The one woman who hadn't fallen for his typical lines and moves. Kate Beckett was electric and he had hoped to get to know her more. Now…

He almost felt bad for the boys.

 _Almost._

* * *

 _ **tbc**_

 _Thank you so much for reading! I would love to hear what you think!_

 _Jo - thanks for the beta and encouragement and friendship!_

 _Joanna - thanks for the read through and suggestions!_

 _Until next time..._


	3. The Date

_A/N: Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed last chapter! I'm sorry I didn't have a chance to personally thank you all!_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of its dialogue, but all mistakes are mine._

* * *

 ** _North Star_**

* * *

 _Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon_

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

 _Richard Castle._

Her heart stopped for a beat and then fluttered back to life.

"Hi," Kate said, a playful smile forming on her mouth as he reached for her hand and brought it to his lips.

"Hi."

Her skin buzzed with the touch of him against her skin. Had he been this unbelievably sexy when she interviewed him? She couldn't think back or concentrate on anything aside from the piercing stare of his blue eyes.

"Hungry?"

"Starving," she answered before realizing she even spoke. He smiled at her quick response and leaned forward brushing his lips near the shell of her ear. With a sharp intake of air, she thought he was about to kiss her when she heard his question.

"Leaving?"

"Okay?" Her answer formed a question. Almost like she was asking him, it was more of a rhetorical question to herself. Castle laced his fingers through hers and led them out of the bar.

She needed to pull herself together.

* * *

The longer they stood outside in the fresh air waiting for his town car to pick them up the more she found a renewed sense of purpose. As she slid against the leather back seat of the luxury car she realized their draw to one another, alcohol haze or not, would work to her advantage.

Of all people to run into. Of all people that Maddie had to pick, it had to be _Richard Castle_. It was almost like Madison was making the whole thing way too easy for her. He was definitely her type in the looks department, and by the way he was running his eyes down the length of her body, she was his type as well. However, attraction didn't mean anything long term. His playboy, womanizing ways were going to make her entire theory easier for her to prove. Was Madison trying to lose on purpose?

Castle held his hand out to help her out of the vehicle when the car stopped near their destination. She sighed for a moment as she let herself relax into the arm of her newfound date while he led her into the diner across town.

On a typical night, she'd never leave with a man she had just started talking to that evening at the bar, but tonight was far from typical. Gaining her confidence back after swallowing down the nervous energy, Kate needed to lay the ground work, set the trap. Let him think that she was completely normal and then starting tomorrow it would all slowly change. She'd work her way through the list of crazy traits that Madison and Lanie helped her pull together.

Regret began to weigh in her stomach, however. The idea was mortifying in any situation, but the fact that she had to make a fool of herself in front of Rick Castle? True, it wasn't like he was Brad Pitt, but he was still a celebrity.

Yeah, this was a bad idea…

"So, Kate, what were the odds of running into you tonight?" he asked as they sat themselves in the booth toward the back of the diner. The place was busier than she would've expected at this time of night, but the table was secluded enough to have a private conversation.

"Must be fate."

"Fate? Really? You don't seem like that type of girl." She smirked at his response but internally was surprised at how well he already read her. He seemed to already know her with just the short amount of time they'd interacted. He was looking at her like he wanted to know more, like he wanted more. None of this was real and she needed to continue to remind herself of that fact.

"I'll be any type of girl you want me to be," Kate shot with a wink, before her face cracked into a fit of laughter when she saw his eyes grow wide. He crumbled up one of the paper napkins from the table and flung it in her direction with a teasing smile.

"Wow. Mean."

"Sorry, I couldn't help it. Wasn't that what the typical Richard Castle date would say?" His face fell slightly with her question as he considered her words. He seemed to recover quickly, meeting her gaze from across the table.

"Who wants typical when you can have extraordinary."

A grin stretched across her face at the apparent pick up line, even though it was obvious, it didn't tamp down the butterflies in her stomach that his words created. "Cheesy line, Mr. Castle."

"I think you found it charming," he said with a teasing note to his voice as another laugh escaped her lips. As much as she wouldn't ever admit it to Madison or Lanie, she was actually enjoying herself tonight, with him. He made her loosen up; he made her have fun.

"True or false?" she mused, looking up from her menu. He quirked his eyebrow at her question, seemingly questioning her sanity.

"True or false?"

"Yes. True or false?" She repeated her question, looking directly into his eyes. "All's fair in love and war."

"True." Confidence bled into the simple response as they continued to stare at each other. Chemistry weighed in the air between them until she broke the connection, looking back down.

"Good answer," she whispered.

"Great question."

* * *

Waiting to place their order, the conversation flowed naturally, bantering back and forth in a way of verbal sparring. He challenged her, but not in the way that she typically found irritating. True, she tried to pretend to find him annoying. He didn't buy it. Castle saw right through it. Saw right through her, and they'd barely spoken more than an hour tonight.

"I will admit when you mentioned leaving, I didn't expect us to end up in a diner."

"I'll have you know, Remy's has the best burgers and shakes." He defended his choice, reaching across the table to squeeze her hand. She was about to tease him some more when the waitress walked up to their table with a warm smile.

"Hey, Kate. Would you like your usual?" she asked, before Kate could respond to Castle's claim on the food. With a soft laugh, she leaned forward to answer to her date.

"I know," she whispered to Castle with a wink and then turned back to the girl. "Sure, Darlene. Thank you."

"Rick, you want your usual as well?" He nodded in response and Kate choked back a laugh.

"You come here a lot, too?" Kate asked, her mouth slightly gaping in surprise as Darlene finished scribbling down their order and walked way.

"Best burgers and shakes, remember?"

"How could I forget? Such a small world. Surprised we never ran into each other here."

"Doesn't seem like the type of place that journalists would hang out at."

He wasn't wrong, but she had started eating here years ago when she was using her contact at the Twelfth Precinct to pull some information for her regarding dates and payments that didn't add up in her on-the-side investigation, but she didn't want to go into details with Castle. Her inner thoughts, inner demons, those words weren't easily said, nor would they be said to someone who she planned to scare off in a matter of weeks.

"Well, Mr. Castle, I do have a couple surprises up my sleeve." A coy smile spread across her face as she tried to flirt with the writer instead of think about her dark past.

"Intriguing."

"I try to be," she whispered, breaking his stare.

* * *

Their late night impromptu dinner had been more fun than Kate would've thought possible. He was charming, playful and even let her have some of his french fries. All round, a perfect gentleman. She hadn't wanted the night to end.

He had suggested a night cap down the street at the bar he owned and against her better judgment, she couldn't stop herself from agreeing. This was all for an article, right?

So now, Kate found herself down in his office at the Old Haunt, curled up on this leather couch and sipping what she could only imagine was incredibly expensive scotch. She could feel the alcohol warming her veins and the pierce of his stare on her skin. Looking up from her glass through her darkened eyelashes, she felt the tension growing in the room.

This wasn't who she was. This wasn't what she did. Yet, she found herself considering leaning closer to him and sliding her leg over his lap to bracket his hips. _Almost_. Her dignity was saved for the moment when he cleared his throat, snapping her out of the haze.

"The article turned out great. Though it didn't seem like you enjoyed the interview too much." His voice was steady as his eyes roamed her body. Maybe the small talk was just a front from him as well.

"Not really my thing. Although the subject wasn't _terrible_ ," she explained with a smirk.

"Glad I wasn't terrible. So you're not interested in entertainment reporting?" he asked, sliding his body closer to hers. Banter as foreplay? If her body's reaction was any sign, it seemed to be working.

"Hardly. Not really where my head was at when I went into the profession."

"But self-help girl?"

"You've been reading up on me, Mr. Castle? But no, that just pays the bills…"

"So, Ms. Beckett, where does your passion lie?" he husked, his breath hot against her ear. Her mind went blank as she felt him trail his hand down her neck and her eyes slammed shut.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Her voice was barely a whisper with the feel of him hovering over her. All control of her reactions vanished when he brushed his lips onto the sensitive spot below her earlobe. God, he needed to stop. No, he needed to do that some more and continue lower…

"I would…" he said, pressing against her skin and skating lower with his mouth. She needed to focus. Focus on the fact that this wasn't real and this was just a story, yet all of her concentration was on the path of his lips along her skin. It had to be the alcohol because she couldn't ever remember having such a primal reaction to someone. Stupid expensive whiskey.

"Well a girl has to have a couple secrets…" she sighed and he chuckled allowing another gasp of air to shoot against her, sparking her nerve endings like electric current.

"A mystery. I love mysteries."

"I assumed," she said, with a giggle. She was still giggling? Who was she tonight? He changed directions abruptly and fused his lips against hers. The kiss turned into a heated dance that was equal parts teeth and tongue as she flipped him off of her to straddle his lap in the way she had imagined earlier. Pressing her body hard against his, rolling her hips onto him, she suppressed the moan that begged for release by molding her mouth onto the pulse of his neck before moving back to his mouth.

It was all going well, but all too soon, she could feel the shift. He slowed their kiss and ran his hands along her sides to still her hips.

"This has been great, Kate," he murmured in the breaths space between their panting bodies. She chased his lips, now addicted to the feel, but he eased her back further.

"It has been great," she agreed, trying to hide the confusion that was weaving its way into her mind. If it was great, why was he stopping her? Had she read the signs wrong? There was no way to deny their chemistry and attraction, especially with their bodies still so intimately pressed against one another. So what was it?

Sure, she should be thanking him for slowing the moment and possibly preventing something she might regret in the morning. However, currently, there was nothing she wanted more than to make that mistake with this gorgeous man who, up until a couple hours ago, she had found completely infuriating in public.

Looking up into his eyes, she watched as what seemed to be a genuine smile stretch across his face before he leaned forward to dust a kiss onto the corner of her mouth. As he pulled back, he tucked a loose piece of hair behind her ear, cupping her cheek in his palm.

"I don't want this to be a drunken hookup..."

She opened her mouth to respond to his declaration but words failed her. Nodding slightly, she moved off of his lap to sit next to him as a wave of embarrassment flushed over her. Kate's thoughts of the evening flashed through her mind in some mortifying highlight reel before he laced his fingers through hers and kissed her temple.

"…I respect you too much for that, Kate. I like you and I don't want to do anything tonight that we could regret."

Was he for real?

Maybe it was the alcohol, or maybe it was their connection, but she was having major regrets about this whole ploy. This man, the one she was getting to know tonight, was not the man she had interviewed.

* * *

 _ **tbc**_

 _Thank you so much for reading everyone! I would love to hear from you all!_

 _xoxo_

 _Jo- thanks for beta!_


	4. The Surprise

_Disclaimer: I own nothing of the show or the movie_

* * *

 ** _North Star_**

* * *

 _Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon_

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

Of all the ways he had expected last night to end up, Kate Beckett straddling his lap hadn't even been a momentary thought in his mind. Yet, no matter what he had thought about the night, what had actually occurred far surpassed anything in his imagination. By the end of the night as he was putting her into a cab, he had felt a level of comfort with her that he hadn't felt with anyone since Kyra. He wasn't Richard Castle, famous novelist. No, by the end of the night he had just been Rick, or Castle as Kate had taken to calling him.

They had an unexplained connection already after just one night.

It was nice, but with the shadow of the bet hanging over his head, he couldn't take anything to the next step. When he'd slowed things down and suggested they'd wait, he could tell she had been a bit taken aback. He just hadn't wanted things to move forward with the ruse still in place.

Kate Beckett deserved to be more than a bet. Yet, it had taken even ounce of will power in his body to not go through with it. She wasn't the like the typical woman he'd dated in the past and that would make his daughter happy. She wasn't a ditzy celebutante nor did she seem particularly interested in his fame. She'd laughed at his pick up lines instead of being impressed by them.

Yes, Kate Beckett was different and he was definitely up for the challenge. He just had to convince the guys to drop the bet.

"So how'd it go last night?" Ryan asked, as Castle rounded the corner with the guys' lunch orders in his arms. They had been harassing him all morning about the bet, so he used lunch as a diversion to change topics on the phone. He should've known better that food alone wouldn't deter those two.

"You really expect me to gossip with you about my date like we're women?" He tried to blow off their expectant looks with a laugh as he handed his friends their food. Their stares made his skin feel like it was burning.

"This wasn't a date. You owe us this, Writer Boy. It's part of the bet," Esposito shot back, causing Castle to roll his eyes at their desperation. They needed to stop trying to live vicariously through his love life.

"Giving you a detailed account of my night is not part of the bet."

"You're sick of her already, aren't you?" Ryan asked, unwrapping his burger with a groan.

Sick of her? He was having exactly the opposite thought. All he thought about all morning was the press of her body against his and how he wished he could see her again _tonight_.

"No. It was- it was nice. I just decided there doesn't need to be a bet," he said, taking a bite of his burger before his friends erupted in laughter. Ryan held up his hand and Esposito slapped it in victory.

"We win then. You can't get out of this," Esposito argued, arching his eyebrow at him.

"I don't want out of this."

"Sounds like you're bored," Ryan added, obviously ignoring Castle's request to end the bet.

"Not bored." Castle paused for a second and sighed. There was no way he would get them off of his back about this. Maybe he could just hide the bet from her; she didn't need to know anything about it. Plus, he could wipe the smug looks they currently sported from their faces. "In fact, I'm pretty sure she's already falling in love with me."

His friends practically spit their food out of their mouths with that statement.

"There's no way." Ryan shook his head with a laugh. "You're not that—"

"Oh she totally is. I laid on the charm and we ended the night at the Old Haunt," Castle explained. Esposito's face lit up in realization and he barked out another laugh.

"So you already slept with her."

"Wow. Kind of a massive assumption there, Espo…"

"Not an assumption. You totally did. You've told us stories about how that was your 'go to' move."

Shit. He had told him that before. Maybe that had initially been his thought when he first suggested it to Kate last night, but after the trip there and then…

It was just different with her. He couldn't even fully understand it himself so there was no way he could possibly explain it to them.

"This is different." His voice and tone adamant in his objection to their idea.

"Well if you want to concede now and lose the bet…"

Ryan's suggestion was barely out of his mouth when Castle nudged his arm to knock him off balance. Swatting him back in retaliation, the guys laughed before Montgomery walked into the break room, ending the conversation for the time being.

After they finished their meals and the boys went back to their case, Castle walked onto the elevator with more conviction than ever.

"Not losing the bet," he muttered under his breath as he reached into his coat for his cell phone.

* * *

She took the morning off.

It wasn't something that she typically did, but last night hadn't been anything typical either. Her mind was still reeling from her date with Castle.

 _Date_?

Was it a date?

Hell, she didn't even know what she could classify it as anymore. It wasn't like any of this was by the books, if there was a handbook for this sort of thing. She was pretty sure if there was, having a vivid sex dream about her pseudo date was probably nowhere in the manual.

Kate had it bad for him and she knew that she shouldn't. She knew that she shouldn't mix business with pleasure, one of the many reasons she regretted the idea for the article as soon as the plan was in action.

Now especially.

Castle wasn't the jackass that she'd assumed he was and for the first time in awhile, she actually thought she could be interested in dating someone. He had been a perfect gentleman and they had a spark. A chemistry that she hadn't felt before, it was like he was a drug and she was already addicted.

She groaned to herself at her insane internal ramblings. Thank God no one else was privy to her mind because her thoughts were beginning to sound like dialogue in a cheesy romance novel. Stepping off of the elevator with a latte in hand, she nearly ran into Lanie. It was like she was waiting for her.

"Kate Beckett, what the hell did you do last night?" Lanie asked, completely interrupting her internal self deprecating rant.

"What do you mean? You know what—" Maybe Lanie had a little too much to drink last night. She had seen Castle walk her out of the club.

"Have you seen your office?"

Her office? What the hell had happened to her office?

"No…"

"Go look, and then you'd better answer my question!"

She darted past her friend and stuttered back when her line of sight made its way through the doorway of her office. Heat warmed her face as she looked around the room at the multiple vases of perfect white roses placed on every spare surface. It was gorgeous.

Still in shock, she walked up to one of the bouquets that had a card sticking from the top.

' _A hundred roses are not as extraordinary as you.'_

"Oh my G—Lanie, what is this?" Her shocked mind and heart fluttered to life.

"All from your boy. They showed up a little bit ago. So again, what did you do last night?" she asked with a knowing smile and a quirk of her eyebrow. Groaning and carding her hands through her long, loose curls, she turned back to her friend and glared. Castle bought her flowers? Not just flowers, but what appeared to be an extravagant amount of flowers…

"No. Nothing happened. We just-we had a good time."

Lanie's smirk didn't falter for a moment and a short laugh fell from her lips before she spoke.

"Well, I can tell that by his response. Damn, Kate."

"No, I'm serious. It was nice, but…" She walked toward her desk chair and sunk down before resting her head against the top of her desk. "…I don't think I can do this. I can't-I can't write the article," she concluded, her voice broken with the thought.

"What do you mean you can't?" her friend asked, propping herself onto the corner of the furniture. "It sounds like it's working perfectly." Kate lifted her head, staring helplessly up at her.

"Lanie, I thought he was an ass at first, that's why I was so happy that Madison picked him. I thought he was perfect for this. He'd deserved everything that he had coming to him, but…" Her words jumbled on her tongue and she shook her head. Nothing was black and white anymore.

"But, what?"

"Last night, we connected—"

"I'll say! It's pretty apparent you _connected_ ," she teased. Kate shoved her off of the desk and stood up to pace throughout the garden that her office had become.

"Not like that. _That_ didn't happen," she stated, leaving out the part where she wished it had. "It's just—he's different. He's not the conceited jackass that I interviewed. Castle was charming, but genuine."

Her friend rolled her eyes at her. "Don't tell me you actually like him."

"Maybe I just had too much to drink," she said with a groan, backtracking. She did have a decent amount at the club and at his bar. Maybe it was just the excitement of the ruse. Maybe in the light of day she'd find him as infuriating as she had when they had first met. Who was she trying to convince? Lanie or herself? She didn't even know anymore.

"Kate, you need to pull yourself together. Gates will fire you if you don't go through with this article and you don't have time to find another guy to write about. You know your deadline is in less than two weeks now." Her voice was loud, almost yelling. Lanie had backed the pitch for the article to their boss, so she had just as much at stake with this idea. Gates wouldn't let her live it down if Kate backed out. "She was completely on board with this article, Kate and if you don't write it you can kiss your exposé goodbye, and probably your job. Hell, definitely your job! You know how she gets."

Kate straightened her shoulders and scanned the office full of flowers once more. This was her career and she wouldn't let a drunken crush threaten that.

"I know. I know. You're right. Of course you're right. I can't risk this opportunity. I need this. This is my chance for Gates to finally listen to my evidence. My chance to finally bring this scandal to the forefront of the news and maybe the police will actually take my inquiry about my mom seriously." She tried her best to keep her voice even, but anytime her mom was mentioned an uncontrollable wave of emotion stifled any composure that remained in her words.

"Honey, I just don't want you to throw all of that away for some guy." Lanie moved toward her and squeezed her shoulder. Closing her eyes for a second, Kate allowed Castle's words replayed in her mind. Did he really think she was extraordinary, or was it just a line? If it was genuine...?

The last thing she wanted to do was hurt him, especially if he really was the man she had had the chance to get to know last night…

Lanie looked at her expectedly and she knew she was right. As much as she didn't want to do this anymore, she was out of options.

"Guess that means phase two of the plan is set to begin," she muttered, the words swirling like acid on her tongue.

"Oh, this will be fun." Her friend laughed as she walked out of the office, toward her own. At least someone was finding some enjoyment in this because nothing but regret pooled in Kate's stomach as she dialed Castle's number.

Nothing about this seemed fun anymore.

* * *

 _ **tbc**_

 _Thank you all for reading! Hope you enjoyed. I'd love to hear your thoughts :)_

 _Jo- thanks for the beta xo_

 _Until next time..._


	5. The Movie

_Disclaimer: I have no ownership in the show or the movie._

 ** _North Star_**

* * *

 _Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon_

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

"To be honest, I was surprised to hear from you," Castle admitted as their town car pulled up to the theater. She let out a laugh while he helped her from the backseat onto the red carpet.

"Really? After you flooded my office with flowers, you didn't think you'd get a reply?"

He flashed her a grin and offered his arm which she gladly accepted in order to weave their way through the crowd entering the premiere without encountering any photographers. It was probably a little hypocritical but she didn't really want to deal with the press tonight, especially with her plan. The further under the radar they were, the better.

"Well. Fine, it was still nice of you to invite me out."

"I just figured… the magazine had promotional passes for the premiere and you seemed to be the type that would enjoy this." She smiled at his scoff and eye roll.

"Are you kidding me? I was dying to go to this, but I found out a little too late." Now it was her turn to roll her eyes at him as they walked into the lobby of the building.

"You're telling me that a man in your position couldn't score his own invite?" Kate asked, her tone mocking his ego. For as much as he couldn't contain his bragging when she had interviewed him, she wondered how connected he really was in reality.

"You caught me. Truth is, I was on the phone with my agent trying to get a pass."

"So I saved you from _groveling_ ," she whispered into his ear, teasing. He turned to her and danced his eyes down her body, making no effort to hide the fact that he was checking her out, before he pulled her closer against his side.

"Exactly, and now I have the pleasure to spend the evening with the hottest woman here."

Kate pulled away to look up at him with an arched eyebrow. He had passed sweet and jumped to ridiculous. "Mmhmm? Are you forgetting how many actresses are here tonight?"

"I stand by my statement. Hottest. Woman. Here."

She shook her head in disbelief and he stared back at her silently for a moment, a softness in his expression.

"Well thank you, but Castle, I'm here with you. You don't need to worry about impressing me."

"Just speaking the truth."

He didn't backtrack, and even though the words were past complimentary, they seemed genuine. This Castle was still the same guy from last night. Silently she had hoped he'd resort back to interview-cocky Richard Castle. It would make this easier.

"I-uh. Thanks. Um, let's go get our seats before the movie begins."

Nerves began to mess with her. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach and she felt her heart race. She wished this was simply the reaction of being near Castle, but she'd be fooling herself if she believed that for even a moment.

"Great idea. I've been dying to see it. I heard the fight scene toward the end is unbelievable."

"Guess we'll see," she muttered, allowing him to lead her inside of the theater with their fingers laced together. Cursing under her breath, she knew he wouldn't make it until the end.

* * *

Looking around the theater, a pang of regret shot through her system. This could have been a great night and she really hated that she was the one who was going to ruin it. She felt a small spark as Castle ran his hand along her the silk fabric of her dress and rested his palm on the small of her back. In spite of the many big name actors and actresses who were mingling in the crowd, his eyes had barely moved away from her.

"I wasn't lying before. You look incredible tonight," he murmured leaning forward, his breath washing over the shell of her ear. Goose bumps spread along her skin as her mind and body reacted to the husk in his voice. She needed to stop allowing herself to think this way.

None of this was real; or rather, it couldn't be real.

She took a deep breath and internally cringed at what she was about to do. If she didn't start now, she never would. Looking up at him, she painted on a huge grin. "Thanks, _Honey_."

Instantly, he did a double take at her and she could see the slight note of panic in his eyes. If just a pet name had that sort of reaction, she wouldn't even need the full ten days she had left. With everything that she had planned, he was going to wish he was dead by the end of it. Her heart dropped again.

He didn't deserve this.

"Hon- honey?"

"Unless you prefer, Sweetheart? Or Babe?"

"Oh. Um, I'm good with whatever." His eyes were wide and she could swear that his line of sight was now directed toward the nearest exit.

The words were forced, as was his smile. By this reaction alone it was safe to say pet names on the second date were definitely enough to freak a man out. She should've known from the way that Madison talked about Matt or Jeff, or was it Dave? Whoever they were, the amount of nicknames she gave each of the men almost immediately had always made Kate uncomfortable, and she had been surprised a couple of those guys had lasted past Maddie uttering the words. The gentle caress of his hand against her body was removed like he'd been burned and with some nervous laughter he appeared to force himself to reach for her arm.

Fantastic. Castle already thought she was crazy. Hell, _she_ thought she was crazy. Silently groaning, she turned up to him with a fake smile.

"Ready to get to our seats?"

"Yeah. That's a good idea. Popcorn? Candy? Anything to drink? My treat?"

"Oh look at my awesome man trying to take care of me."

Gag.

"But, no. I need to watch my weight to look good for you. Movie theater snacks are loaded with unneeded calories." Said the girl who had downed a chocolate shake, burger and fries last night with him… She was laying it on thick because the sooner he ran screaming from her craziness, the sooner she could quit the charade and drown her sorrows alone. Pulling the band-aid off quickly, so he would forget about her in a blink of an eye and she could try to pretend that he wasn't the one that got away. It was the only solution.

This was on her; she deserved this for not backing down.

"Okay. No to popcorn," Rick teased, but she could see his eyes roll as he led her to their seats.

This would definitely be over soon.

* * *

Maybe it was the glamour of the evening. Maybe it was too much pressure for a second date. Maybe she was just one a good actress before and she really was crazy, but whatever it was something had snapped with his date.

Kate Beckett had gone from gorgeous, funny, and seemingly normal to… odd, clingy, and well, at least she was still gorgeous, all in the space of five minutes.

But pet names? Perhaps if they'd been together for years, he'd find the occasional 'Babe' or 'Honey' affectionate and sweet. After dating for twenty four hours? Not so much.

Plus, the girl that was so keen on junk food and a milkshake last night was now concerned with her weight today? Had she been abducted by aliens and replaced with a body double? With the way things had changed so drastically, that was one of the only theories that seemed plausible. If things didn't switch back soon, he was going to have a bit more trouble with this bet than he had originally assumed. Bragging to the guys yesterday was probably slightly premature.

"So your mom's an actress?"

"She is. You've been reading up on me?"

"I'm a journalist, remember?" She smiled at him, flashing her press pass. Like he could forget, that's the reason they were here. The interview with the infuriatingly beautiful woman who didn't care that he had property on the moon or that he had a house in the Hamptons. Kate had asked her questions, completely unaffected by his typical swoon worthy lines. Blinking back into the present, now that same woman sat there looking up at him with a slightly crazed look on her face.

Definitely aliens.

"Ah, yes. How could I forget?"

"With your looks, you should've been one too. You're _way_ better looking than George Clooney or Brad Pitt."

"Um, thanks?" He let out a nervous laugh. This night was going downhill fast. If only he could convince her to have a glass of wine, and then he could have something stronger than water.

"My boyfriend is so hot," she practically yelled, causing a couple people to turn around and shoot them weird looks.

God, he definitely needed something stronger than water.

* * *

Kate had never been so happy for a movie to start in her entire life. Anytime she opened her mouth she mentally winced at how unlike herself she sounded. It was like an out of body experience and the roll of Kate Beckett was being played by some obnoxiously cartoonish version of Madison. After this second date, she was convinced that there wouldn't be a third date to worry about and as much as the idea of not seeing Rick anymore saddened her, at least she could save the rest of her self-respect from some of the antics that Maddie and Lanie had planned.

If she pretended that everything prior to the movie rolling hadn't happened, the fact that she was sitting here cuddled up next to Castle was nice. She welcomed the strength of his body against hers and for a moment she could fool herself into enjoying it. That was, until she realized that the big fight scene was coming up in the movie, the one scene that he was looking forward to watching.

Damnit, she really hated herself right now.

"Rick," she hissed loud enough that several people glared. Perfect. " _Rick!_ " Her voice was even louder as she swore she heard him curse under his breath.

"Yes?"

"I'm thirsty."

"Can it wait? The movie probably has twenty minutes left."

"Honey…" She coughed for exaggeration of her point and another one for good measure. "So thirsty…"

A rather large man from the row in front of them, turned around and if looks could kill… "Lady! Will you shut up? People are trying to enjoy the movie."

Great, now other people were also thinking she was nuts. At this point, the fact that she was doing any of this? Maybe she did need to be committed.

"You shut up. Or my boyfriend will make you shut up," she stated, squeezing Castle's arm to emphasize her point. His arm practically flew away from hers and he lifted both of his hands up in defeat of the burly moviegoer.

" _Kate_... I'm sorry, sir. She didn't mean to make a scene."

"Yeah, you'd better be sorry," she continued to the man in front of her, pretending she didn't even hear Castle speak. He placed his hand on her knee and squeezed, almost trying to plead with her to be quiet.

"What do you want to drink?"

"Pepsi?"

"Pepsi it is…" Another forced smile and a fleeting glance at the screen before he turned to rush to get her drink.

She was an ass and she couldn't wait for the night to end.

"Hey, sorry about that." Kate leaned forward and whispered to the man in front of her. "We're filming a reality show. Maybe you'll see yourself soon."

His eyes lit up in realization, as his posture relaxed considerable.

"Oh. Oh, no problem! Let me know if you need anything else."

Well at least she had fixed her image with the other people around them. After all, everyone wanted to be famous nowadays.

* * *

Twenty more minutes.

She couldn't wait twenty damn minutes to be dying of thirst.

Muttering as he walked into the lobby, he looked around and couldn't find a single person in sight. This was ridiculous. He had been so excited to be invited and now? Now he was going to miss the end of the movie, miss the one scene that everyone would be buzzing about.

He noticed an open area for concessions at the end of the lobby, so he jogged over to the booth, trying to save some time.

"One Pepsi, please."

With a smile, the man turned right away to fill his order. Maybe he could sense his urgency to get back to the movie? Whatever it was, he handed him the soda fairly quickly for a concession stand employee and sent him on his way. At least something was going right for once this evening.

Tonight was trying his patience; mostly he couldn't believe that the Kate Beckett of tonight was real. The more he thought about it, the more he didn't believe it at all. It seemed like it was an act. From everything that he knew of her or had read up on her, this wasn't her and he didn't quite know what that meant.

Maybe she was trying to scare him off? Yet if that was the case, why had she even bothered asking him out tonight? Something didn't add up, and he wouldn't let her off the hook until she explained herself.

After all, he wasn't losing his bet with the guys, and there was no way he could deal with her acting like this the rest of the time.

* * *

He hadn't missed the scene.

Secretly she was so thankful that he got back in time because he really didn't deserve any of this. With a small smile and a kiss on the cheek, she accepted the outstretched cup of soda. She took a quick sip and coughed. Damn, she forgot to ask for diet.

"Something wrong?"

Did she make a face after taking the sip? She wasn't even trying to be difficult now.

"No, no. It's fine. Really."

"What?"

"It's not diet, but it's okay."

"I'm sorry. I'll go get you another," he gritted out, but before he could even leave his seat, Kate reached over to rest her hand against his forearm.

"Castle, I'm fine," she said with a sincere smile, as she rubbed her thumb gently against his skin. "Your scene is coming up." Surprise flashed in his eyes and his mouth stretched into a hesitant grin, the sight in the darkened theater sent a spark shooting through her veins.

"Thank you. _Truly_."

"Hope it's everything you wanted."

For the first time since they sat down tonight, Castle reach for her hand and pulled her closer to his body. With another whisper of thanks against the top of her head, she couldn't help the feeling of guilt that settled in her stomach.

Sighing against his shoulder, she turned back to the screen. No more games tonight.

* * *

He didn't want to think it. No, if he acknowledged it, he could jinx the entire situation. Yet it was hard to ignore the fact that Kate had switched back to the same intriguing woman that he spent time with last night. It seemed like the aliens took back their replica while he was visiting the concession stand. Either that, or the sugary beverage had actual magical properties.

Whatever happened, ignoring the window of weirdness, he was again happy to be out with her tonight.

"The movie was awesome. I see blockbuster status ahead!" The claim was slightly exaggerated but the final fight scene hadn't disappointed. It was everything he wished it could be. Turning to his date, he watched as Kate rolled her eyes at his excitement with a small laugh.

"It was okay. I guess. A little too much CGI for my taste. I prefer more of the classics of Sci-Fi."

Well this was a turn of events, he quirked his eyebrow at her in challenge.

"Okay, Hot Shot. What do you think is better than this movie?"

"Not better. Just different, but this movie doesn't even hold a candle to Forbidden Planet."

Did she? There was no way-

"Are you _kidding_ me?"

His reaction had her turning her body and kneeling up on the car's leather seat, appearing to be ready to defend her claim.

"What? Castle, that's an amazing movie—"

He shook his head. She didn't understand.

"No. Kate, it is. That's why I'm- I'm just, I usually have to bribe people to watch that with me."

Her jaw dropped for a beat before her lips turned into a breathtaking smile.

" _Really_? It's honestly one of my favorite movies."

"Same here. That's—"

"Quite a coincidence," she said, finishing his thought. The smile that continued to stretch across her face was the most sincere thing he had seen all night.

"Yeah…"

He couldn't take his eyes off of her. She was beautiful and when she let him in, let him get to know her more. All he could do was crave knowing it all. There were so many layers to Kate Beckett and he was just scratching the surface.

The car pulled up to the curb outside of her building, cutting their comfortable silence. He jumped out of his side of the car, to be there to open Kate's door and help her out. Castle reached down for her hand and walked her closer to the door to her apartment building.

"It's been nice."

"It has," he agreed. Craziness aside, he found that he actually meant it.

Kate looked down at her hands, before meeting his eyes. With a small nod, she leaned up and feathered a kiss onto his cheek. "I should get inside. Call me tomorrow?"

"Of course. Until tomorrow, Kate."

He watched her turn toward the building and walk inside before he headed back to the car.

"Castle, wait…" He was barely able to turn around before he felt her pull his body against hers and lean up to mold her lips against his in a hard, insistent press. Just as he got his bearings back, relaxing into the kiss, and trying to deepen it further, Kate pushed away with a shy smile. "Have a good night, Castle."

With that, she rushed into her building, leaving him stunned on the sidewalk, alone.

* * *

 _ **tbc**_

 _Thank you so much for reading everyone! I know I have not been the most consistent about replying every chapter but every review and comment seriously makes my day. Thanks for it!_

 _Jo-as always- you are the best beta. Thank you._

 _Until next time. xoxo_


	6. Am I crazy or are you crazy?

_Disclaimer: The only thing I own are my mistakes_

* * *

 ** _North Star_**

* * *

 _Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon_

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

"It was awful, Maddie," she whined, sinking into her plush office chair and banging her head against her desk. She could hear her friend walking up next to her but Kate could only concentrate on the deserving pain of her forehead against the wooden surface.

"How was it awful?" Kate's head shot up at Madison's question and she couldn't help as her eyes formed tiny slits, glaring at her. "Sounds like everything went according to plan and yet he's still smitten with you," she said with a shrug and a knowing smirk.

"Don't look at me like that. It's just _deceitful_. He's a good guy and—"

"And you like him," Madison interrupted. The look on her friend's face was overly smug and she wanted to do anything to wipe it off her face. This was what she wanted. Madison wanted her to find a guy and finally open up to the idea of diving in with someone. Yet, nothing about this was okay or even real because as soon as Castle found out what was really going on, anything they could have built together would be burned down in that moment.

With a groan, Kate hid her face in her hands before moving to thread her fingers anxiously through her hair. "No…yes…I don't know."

"What exactly don't you know, Becks?"

Kate looked down at the papers on her desk and couldn't help but shuffle through them. She was doing everything to avoid Madison, trying her best to pretend she wasn't sitting here calling her out on her feelings. "How can I like him? Honestly? I'm not being myself. I'm acting crazy…"

"Are you calling me crazy?"

A loud laugh escaped from her lips, but when she saw the offended expression on Madison's face she tried to bite back further amusement.

"Maddie, if you act like how I acted last night? Then yes, I'm calling you crazy and I can one hundred percent understand why you can't keep a guy around."

"Well you're keeping Rick Castle around," she scoffed.

Maybe if she told her, maybe if she voiced it, then her friend that believed in true love above all else could help her get out of this mess before it was too late.

"I couldn't do it," Kate admitted, her voice mumbled, as she stood up to take the portfolio from her desk to file it in the cabinet across the room. She could feel her friend stalking up behind her.

"Couldn't do what?"

Her shoulders dropped, turning around toward Madison, eyes firmly planted to the floor.

"I dropped the act before the end of the movie. I couldn't be that _mean_ to him. I wanted him—"

"You want him to like you," Maddie finished, smiling.

"Okay, fine," she said with a nod. "I want him to like me. I don't want him to think that's who I am." Her voice lost all volume by the end of her declaration as she stood there in the middle of the room. To keep her mind from drifting to thinking more about Castle, she started picking at her nails before meeting Madison's concerned gaze.

"Maybe when this is all over you can tell him what was really going on. If you two are really meant to be, he'll understand."

"When I explain to him that I've lied to him for the majority of the time I've known him? Yeah, I'm sure that'll be perfect," Kate snapped, rolling her eyes at the situation, moving back to her desk chair and flopping down.

"Ms. Beckett," Gates barked walking into Kate's office, causing Madison's spine to stiffen before finding the nearest chair to turn toward their boss.

"Yes?"

"How's the research going?" Gate's voice was light. She was enjoying every step of this process so far, but luckily Kate hadn't had to give her a constant update. Lanie and Madison were able to divert attention away from her as she dealt with the internal debate of her ruse with Castle.

"It's, well…"

Could she really tell her that this was going well? With everything that had happened so far, feelings aside, could this project be considered a success?

"Don't tell me you're messing this up, Kate," Gates accused, eyebrow arched as her eyes burned into Kate's skin. She could feel her heart racing while her editor stood there tapping her foot. If ever there was a moment that she wished the ground would swallow her whole, this would be it.

"No, no sir," she stuttered, swallowing the giant lump in her throat. "I'm actually already on the third day of the project."

"And he's still around?" Gates asked with a cackle. "So the smug jackass has some staying power…"

A wave of defensiveness washed over her and she should've kept her mouth shut, but the explanation just slipped off of her tongue. "Sir, Mr. Castle is actually not the man that he seems to be in public."

As soon as the words left her mouth, all of the air was sucked from the room and Madison's eyes widened at Kate's outburst.

"Ms. Beckett, I don't need to remind you what this article could do for you at this magazine. This has huge marketing potential. We could even market it as a follow up to your previous column on Mr. Castle," she mused.

Kate stood up, her mouth gaped open, about to say the first thing that popped into her head. "No. That wasn't what we agreed to." To hell with her job, she wouldn't let her boss hurt Castle's image. Madison reached for her arm, grounding her back to reality. Glancing down at her friend's hand, she sighed and chose the rest of her words carefully. "I'll continue this, I will, but his name stays out of the article. That was the original plan; the man is anonymous in the piece."

Gates sighed and waved Kate off. "Fine. We're losing a lot of potential if we can't throw the celebrity factor into it, so the rest of the column better be spectacular. I want to feel mortified for both you and the unfortunate subject."

"Oh trust me, it's been humiliating thus far," she explained.

"Good. Then make sure to capture that on the page as well—help our readers avoid the disaster that this relationship is."

"Wonderful," Kate grumbled under her breath as Gates walked out.

* * *

Rick typed up the last couple sentences of his chapter and read through the words before he saved the document and sent it off to Gina. At least he wasn't completely behind on the deadline for his new book; three days late sending the chapter in was practically early for him. He clicked his laptop closed just as Alexis bounced into his office with her messenger bag draped across her shoulder.

"Alright, Dad. I'm going to go study at Paige's. It's okay that I'm going to stay there tonight, right?" his daughter asked, bending down to kiss him on the cheek.

"Of course, Pumpkin," he said, with a smile and a small hug. As she pulled away, Alexis eyed him, scrunching her face.

"You're not going to be too lonely?"

He must have appeared pretty pathetic to his daughter, yet looking down at his apparel of pajama pants and a super hero t-shirt, maybe she was justified in her question.

"No, I'm good," he assured, but she crossed her arms and huffed. It definitely had to be the fact he was still in his pajamas. "I actually have a date tonight."

Alexis stood back in surprise as her eyes widened and she let out a quick laugh.

"Oh _really_?" she teased. "Who's it this time? Bachelorette number five?"

Pushing back from his desk, Castle shook his head and walked toward the kitchen with Alexis following behind.

"That was number three, but no, it's the same woman I went out with last night. Kate Beckett, the journalist."

Castle opened the fridge and pulled out the can of whipped cream, offering it to Alexis for a taste. When she declined, he sprayed some into his own mouth.

"I love her columns in North Star. I didn't realize you started seeing her after the interview," she said, sitting herself onto the stool at the breakfast bar. He found it funny how the idea of a date with Kate Beckett distracted her from leaving.

"I didn't…it was actually the night that the guys were making fun of my…my dating history. We met at the bar."

"Dad, that was three days ago. You're still seeing her? I'm impressed," she joked with mocking applause.

"Save the fanfare. I almost broke it off yesterday. She was getting a little weird."

The memory of his seemingly normal date, converting to someone that was better suited for a romantic comedy than real life, left him wondering if seeing her tonight really was the best idea.

"In all honesty, aren't you a little weird too?"

" _Funny_."

"Sounds like you're made for each other," she joked.

"There is something about her. I just can't quite figure her out yet."

He wouldn't have even considered having dinner with her tonight, but they had really connected again on the way to her apartment last night. She had been relaxed and real after the movie. Her eyes had been brighter and her voice had been lighter during the car ride.

It was a tale of two Kate Beckett's and he was determined to find out which one was real because he found that he really enjoyed her company. Well he enjoyed it when she didn't give off the impression that she was trying to scare him off.

"Doesn't sound weird to me, sounds like you have a crush."

"Okay, you're being too smart for your own good," Castle said, as his daughter smirked at him.

"I'm just saying, if Kate Beckett is anything like she seems in her columns, she's down to earth," she paused, chewing on her lip like she was really thinking about what she wanted to say next. "She's real, Dad and it's been awhile since I've seen you date anyone that's actually interested in you and not your paycheck."

"Your brutal honesty is just that, brutal."

Brutal, but she did have a point. Most of his dates wanted to be arm candy and ushered around to the most expensive restaurants to show up in pictures with him on Page Six. Kate was content eating burgers at a diner and avoiding the photographers all together. It really had him thinking that maybe he was right in thinking there was more to Kate than she was letting on.

"Well I'm proud of you for giving it a try this long, but promise me you'll look past the weird because it could be all in your head."

"Sage advice from my teenage daughter. I'll take it," he said, walking around the counter to press a kiss to her forehead.

"One of us has to be the adult around here."

"Speaking of other pseudo adults…" Earlier he had been so focused on getting his chapter finished he hadn't noticed anyone else in the loft. He was definitely in the zone.

"Gram left for the night before you even got home."

"Perfect. I think I'll just make Kate dinner here instead of going out," he said, moving back toward the fridge to assess what he could create for his date.

"That'll be nice. Win her over with your cooking."

Looking back at his daughter around the refrigerator door, he stuck his tongue out at her.

"Weren't you going to Paige's?" he asked.

"Funny, yes. On my way. Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Alexis laughed at her own joke while he groaned at the idea of his daughter doing anything that he had considered doing with a date. They needed to stop sharing so much.

"Not funny. Have a good night," he called to his daughter as the door slammed shut.

Turning around to look at the clock, he smiled. It was time to get everything ready for tonight and hopefully it would be Kate Beckett showing up at his door.

Not Mr. Hyde.

* * *

Glancing at the clock waiting for his date to show up, Castle finally heard a knock at the door. Kate was over a half hour late from when she was supposed to be here. He had started to feel like she wasn't going to show up at all and that maybe he had completely misread the end of their date last night.

Rick opened the door to find Kate standing there looking like sex on two legs with a seductive smile painted on her face.

"Hi," she purred.

"Um..hi." He stood frozen holding onto the door handle as he stared down at her legs. Wow, he needed to snap out of it but he was entranced like any red-blooded man would be if she showed up at their door…

"Can I come in or are you going to have me stand out here all night?" Kate teased.

"God. Yes, please come in," he stammered, holding the door open wider.

Kate slinked passed him wearing a short black skirt, a white tailored shirt and black stilettos that complimented the fact that her legs appeared to go on for miles. He was so enamored with the sight of her cherry red lips and darkened eyelashes that he had almost missed the bag in her arms and the…

"What is that?"

With a small smile and a bat of her eyelashes, Kate glided over to him and handed him the object.

"Oh this? It's our _love fern_."

Love fern.

 _Fantastic._

* * *

 _ **tbc**_

 _Thanks so much for reading! I would love to hear for you!_

 _xoxo_

 _Special thanks to Berkie, Evan and Joanna for helping with this!_

 _Until next time..._


	7. Love Fern

_Disclaimer: The only thing I own are my mistakes_

* * *

 ** _North Star_**

* * *

 _Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon_

* * *

 **Chapter 7**

"Bro, what _is_ that?"

Castle turned toward the object of Esposito's mocking and sighed. Both of the guys were crowded around Kate's plant, he couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"Yeah doesn't seem like it fits the décor," Ryan teased.

"Shut up guys. Kate brought it over." Honestly, he didn't even know why he was defending the stupid fern. The fact that she showed up at his house with decorations and plants should be another notch on the "Kate Beckett was slightly insane" chart, yet he couldn't write her off.

No, instead he was more intrigued by the woman after spending so much time with her lately. There was a mystery to her that he needed to solve. She was in every way the down to earth, sharp witted reporter and he was falling for her.

Every way aside from the faux-Kate version of herself and he hadn't quite figured that part out yet.

" _Kate_ …" Espo bit back a laugh while sitting down to shuffle and deal for their new poker hand.

"Yes, Kate," he said, holding back any further explanation to his friends. Though after avoiding their stares as he took a sip of his scotch, he heard Ryan's muffled chuckle.

"So, you two are still a thing?"

"We are."

"Well there's still time for you to mess it up," Esposito stated, leaning over the table to high five his partner.

"The bet isn't over until, it's over," Castle explained with a laugh. If they wouldn't leave the subject alone, he might as well play things off for the better. They didn't need to know that there were the two sides of Kate Beckett because at this point he couldn't even convince himself that it was true

"That's deep," Ryan scoffed, throwing his chips into the center of the table before his partner did the same.

"Laugh all you want, Castle, but we'll be laughing when we win the bet."

"Not going to win it. Kate was actually over here the other day."

"Oh she was?"

"Could be getting serious…" He knew he was just goading his friends, but he just wanted them to shut up. They were here to play poker; not gossip about his dating life.

"Serious? I hear most marriages start from relationships that were a bet," Esposito stated, sarcasm laced in every syllable. Really at this point, he felt bad that he had ever made the bet to begin with. The boys didn't have a chance in hell of winning and he felt the pang of guilt in his stomach each time he was around Kate, constantly reminding him that this all started as a bet.

"Well, maybe, but she doesn't need to know about the bet."

"Secrets come out eventually, Richard," his mother added, walking into the room on her way out for the evening.

"Thank you, Mother. But I've got this handled. Completely under control."

"Mmhmm. It looks like it," she said, the sing song tone of her voice hanging in the air. His mother never minced words so he knew by her voice and mannerisms that she was well aware that none of this was under his control. He glanced down at the cards in his hand trying to ignore the sounds of the red-head matriarch swinging the door open. She was hopefully out of his hair for the night so she could save her knowing glares for another time. "Oh, Richard?"

" _What_?" he answered, in a matching mocking tone.

"You've got company!"

The entire table perked up with the announcement as his eyes darted toward the entryway, just in time to watch Kate emerge from the hall wearing skinny jeans and a casual black sweater slung off of her left shoulder. Her smile stretched across her face as soon as her eyes met his. She was gorgeous as usual.

Blinking out of his short trance, from the corner of his eye he noticed Ryan and Esposito holding back a laugh.

Maybe now would be the time to work on creating a cloak of invisibility.

* * *

Walking into the loft, Kate was greeted with a group of slack-jawed expressions. Well, most of the surprise was painted on Castle's face and really she couldn't blame him. It was Lanie's idea to crash his guy's poker night and perhaps this could be the final push to end the madness once and for all.

The other night when she showed up at his place with items to redecorate the space with a "woman's touch," the look on his face was like a deer in headlights. Yet, after his apparent moment of panic eased away, the evening turned out nice.

 _Too nice_.

So much so, that after a couple glasses of wine, she knew she needed a new plan. Not that she could really focus on that as his lips worked their way down her neck and his teeth scraped against her collarbone. She knew she had to flip the switch and not be herself, but she couldn't help it. Castle was so damn intoxicating, well Castle and the wine, but mostly his presence made her skin buzz when he was near.

It had been the perfect night, but he had stopped things before they went too far. She had found herself disappointed as much as she had known it was for the best. Sleeping with someone who was the subject of her story? She hadn't ever gone that far, but then again things hadn't ever been this confusing. She was so far over the line at this point; she couldn't even see the line anymore.

So here she was, in front of his friends, trying to put on the act again and wanting to secretly let him in on the hoax. Let him know that she really did like him and she wasn't this person that she was pretending to be. She really didn't want to scare him off, not when for the first time in God knows how long, she actually had a connection with someone.

Walking into the room with Castle and his friends, all smoking cigars, drinking, and betting amounts that would probably equal her annual salary; she took a deep breath and painted on a huge grin.

"Rick. Honey, are you going to introduce me to your friends?"

"Yes, Honey. Are you going to introduce us?" his friend mocked. Castle glared at him before turning his expression toward her. The smile seemed forced; lacking the slight wrinkle of his lids and shine of his eyes.

"Hi. I don't know where his manners are. I'm Kate, his girlfriend."

"Kevin Ryan, Javier Esposito, this is Kate Beckett."

"Nice to meet you, Kate," Ryan greeted.

"Girlfriend?" Esposito asked, arching his eyebrow in Castle's direction.

"Shut up," he hissed at his friend, before standing up and kissing her on the cheek. "I didn't think I'd see you tonight. I thought I mentioned tonight was poker night."

"Oh you did? I don't remember that," she lied, gnawing on bottom lip to feign innocence. In reality she felt like any ass, but the words from Gates were playing on repeat in her head. This was her shot and if she messed this up, her exposé would be dead in the water.

Assessing the table, she noted the typical items for the poker game along with some beer and a bowl of pretzels. If she would've prepared more, she could've brought finger sandwiches to really seem overbearing, but she barely forced herself into the cab after taking a couple shots of tequila to calm her nerves. She was at constant war with herself. Straddling the line of wanting to come clean to him versus wanting desperately to just make the best of the situation so she could write the article she wanted to write. It was selfish and eventually it would all explode in her face. She knew it.

"Kate?"

"Huh?" she asked, looking up at Castle as his eyebrow arched in question.

"You seemed to zone out for a second…"

"Oh, yeah. Yeah. I'm fine. I was just thinking about what sort of snacks I could make for you boys."

"Snacks?" Ryan's head perked up and turned toward the pair. "What are you thinking?"

"She's thinking, it's not her job to make food for you."

She giggled and lightly smacked Castle's chest before brushing a kiss onto his cheek.

"Of course it is, Silly. It's my job to make sure my love and his friends have enough to eat."

"Isn't that cute, Caste? Her love…" Esposito made fun of her word choice as she expected his friends would. Anyone calling someone a pet name this early in a relationship deserved to be mocked. She laced her hand through Rick's and gave it a light squeeze while she surveyed the rest of the room to see what other ways she could make herself seem a little off.

Bingo. The fern. Castle didn't seem to water it since she brought it to his place, not that she was one to talk. Nothing living survived at her apartment or her office. She was far too busy to tend to a garden or even a singular potted plant, yet Castle's negligence would work to her advantage in this case.

"Oh no…oh no… _What_ …?" she squealed, rushing to tend to the greenery.

"Kate?" Rick asked, his eyes squinting.

"Our love fern…It's _dead_!" Kate's voice raised a few octaves and she faked a small cry at the end, laying it on thick in hope that this would be the final nail to end this charade. Castle moved closer to her, running his hand down her arm to try to calm her heightened reaction. The touch of his skin against hers distracted her long enough that she allowed him to defend himself.

"No. No! Of course not. It's just sleeping…"

"You let it _die_!" With slight hesitation, she wiggled out of his arms and looked up at him with fake tears in her eyes. "Are you going to let us die? You should think about that!"

Someone should give her an Academy Award after that performance. In high school she failed her drama class, but she must have improved since then.

She stormed off to his kitchen, hiding her face inside of the fridge to hold in the eye roll and laugh. As embarrassing as this situation was, she couldn't help but find amusement in the lament over the fern. The situation was to the point of unbelievable. How could he think this was how anyone would really act? Better question was, why had he been putting up with it?

Trying to compose herself for a moment, she searched through the shelves for something she could piece together as a snack for the men when she heard of them whisper a question to Castle.

"Is she on something?"

Pulling out a box of crackers from the cabinet, she arranged the snack on the plate and went in search of some cheese as the men continued to whisper loud enough that she could make out the entire conversation.

"No, I think she's just stressed," Castle defended, even she could tell he didn't mean the words. He probably thought she was just as insane as his friends did. Wincing at the thought, she sliced up the cheese and paired the pieces with the crackers.

"Castle, seriously. She's not right in the head. Maybe you should suggest medication."

Oh, she could work with this. Sneaking up between the whispering men, she laid the plate of small finger snacks onto the table.

"Are you saying I'm some sort of mental person!" she shrieked, scattering the snacks with her movements.

"No. Of course not. They were just joking," Rick defended, reaching for her arm again. Did he realize that touching her was the one thing that could bring her off task?

Of course not. How could he? He didn't know any of this was an act.

"I don't think you're taking our relationship very seriously, Rick. Maybe we should take some time apart for you to think about that," she huffed. Turning away from the table, she moved toward the door and grabbed her purse without turning back.

* * *

The door slamming shut rang in his ears and caused his back to arch from the sheer volume. Everything about the reaction was wrong. It was all staged. He was sure of it, now more than ever. When things were normal with Kate, he found himself falling hard for her. After their last date, he started to piece together that something else was going on entirely. She seemed at war with the person she was and the person she seemed to be forced to be. Tonight was the deciding factor. Kate was acting.

"Looks like she just broke up with you," Ryan laughed as Espo playfully punched his arm.

"Yeah, Bro, looks like we just won the bet."

"She did _not_ break up with me…" he mumbled, still staring at the door, trying to decide his next move. The guys didn't seem to even notice that he wasn't paying attention to their premature celebration dances.

"She left without saying goodbye, Castle. I think you're toast."

"Hey Javi, I call the Corvette first…"

"Guys, hold up. This isn't over," he muttered, making the final decision to rush out to find Kate before it was too late.

Tonight was over the top and quite frankly insane. He let her go through with her little performance for too long but he was going to put a stop to it for once and for all.

All bets were off. It was time for honesty now.

* * *

 _ **tbc**_

 _Thank you so much for reading! I would love to hear from you!_

 _I apologize for the delay for this chapter but appreciate all the messages and encouragement!_

 _Thanks to Berkie and Esther for your help with this one!_

 _xoxo_


	8. Someone has a secret

_A/N: For those being nice...for those being supportive...thank you...this is for you_

* * *

 ** _North Star_**

* * *

Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon

* * *

 **Chapter 8**

"Kate, hold up."

Shit.

"Castle, I'm really not in the mood right now," she said, with a sigh as she turned back toward Castle gasping to catch his breath.

"Shut up," he huffed and she stuttered to a stop, meeting his eyes in surprise.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me." Her jaw dropped open to try to reply but her tongue fumbled in her mouth, feeling thick with confusion. "Better. Now we need to talk." She needed to get her thoughts together, putting the mask back in place to continue the charade once more before leaving for good.

"You're in the middle of a poker game and my feelings are hurt. I really don't think I can-"

Before she realized what was happening, he pushed her up against the wall next to the elevator and kissed her hard on the lips. "I told you to shut up," he growled, his breath warming her skin.

"Don't tell me to shut up," she argued, shoving him away, but her blood ran hot in her veins from the trace of his kiss still on her mouth.

"We're going to talk and you're going to explain what the hell is going on," Castle said, crowding her back against the wall. "And I want the truth for a change."

"Oh really?" she asked with a harsh laugh. "So, _Rick,_ what is the truth?"

"You're acting. That much is obvious because I've read up on you, _Beckett_ , and there's never been a mention that you belonged in a padded room. So it's an act. I mean, come on! Love fern?" he scoffed.

"I-I don't know what-" she stammered, the words an incoherent mess inside of her head.

"I just want to know why-" His eyes pleaded with her, the blue sparkling even with the dim lighting of the hallway. He deserved an explanation, he did, but panic rose in her chest.

"I can't do this now. Not here…" With a small sigh, she ducked under his arms and bolted into the waiting elevator.

"Kate?" he asked, frozen in place.

"I'm sorry, Castle. I really am—more than you know."

Before he could wipe the confusion from his face, the door rolled shut and left her to crumble within herself onto the floor. What the hell was she doing?

* * *

Kate had barely made it into the office the next day. Caffeine wasn't even making the smallest dent on the sheer exhaustion she felt from being up all night. She had played last night over in her mind, like some depressing highlight reel of her life's failures. As if the situation with Castle hadn't been bad enough, she had spent a lot of the time thinking about her mom and her unsolved murder. What if she never had the chance to bring to light all of her evidence and suspicions?

Guilt pulled at her stomach when she thought of the fact that she was trying to live in the past. Gates promised her a chance at the article and this could finally propel her career into the direction she had always planned. Cutting edge journalism where it didn't matter who she was wearing or what her horoscope said. At the end of the day, she was a writer; she could speak for the dead with this investigation, but would her mom really have wanted her to give up her life for this?

Especially now.

When she could be happy… When it was all within her reach…

"He knows," she admitted, seeing Madison walk into her office.

"Who knows?"

Rolling her eyes, she propped her head against the surface of her desk and groaned. "Don't play stupid, Maddie. Rick knows I'm acting and he confronted me and now…" Kate turned to see her friend move to take a seat in one of the guest chairs, smirking at her dramatics.

"And now, your fashion sense in suffering," Maddie teased, motioning to her outfit choice of dark jeans and a simple white t-shirt. Irritation flowed through her veins as she shot up in her seat to glare at the blonde.

"Really? That is what you're focusing on?" she spat. "I need help and clearly I'm talking to the wrong person here. Apparently I mistook you for an actual adult." Madison smiled at Kate's anger-laced words in a way that you'd sympathize with a small child. Her actions were entirely patronizing.

"Becks, calm down. So did he dump you then? If so, it looks like your article is saved and I was wrong…"

"Well…"

"Well what?"

"He didn't actually-"

If he had just yelled at her and told her it was over, that would have been so much easier; a clean break with a definitive end, instead of this gray area that they were left in. He was angry, but then he had kissed her and her mind went blank with the electric shock of his lips on her.

"You're kidding me!" Madison shrieked, her friend's words breaking through her mental fog. "He caught you in your act and the man still didn't break up with you?"

"No, he actually kissed me…"

"He has it bad, seriously and look at you! You want to make Castle babies," she teased, balling up a discarded sticky note and tossing it in her direction.

"Shut up. I don't-" she started, but what was the point of lying anymore? She had it bad for him, too. She could see a future with him and maybe one day love the man.

Dammit.

"Maybe not at this moment, but you've thought about things with him. I can tell by that dreamy look."

"I need to go talk to Lanie," she muttered, scrubbing her hands down her face. Had she even showered today? Her caffeine haze was wearing thin and hours were jumbling together.

"No, Becks. I can be serious. I promise. So what are you going to do?" Maddie sat back in her chair, crossing her legs and straightening her skirt. Her friend really meant well; she probably shouldn't take her lack of sleep and hostility out on her. This was a heart versus head problem but her head was sick of holding out.

"I-I don't know. I want to come clean."

"I knew it!" Maddie said, jumping up and clapping her hands like a toddler, but almost as soon as her friend began the celebration she paused in realization. "But what about Gates?"

"Maybe she doesn't have to know," she mumbled, her eyes scanning around the room as her mind raced with all the possibilities of what she had just concluded. Darting around her desk, she grabbed her coat from the hook and ran out the door. She heard Madison call after her but she didn't have time to explain or she might change her mind.

* * *

Well that had been a waste of time.

After rushing to the loft to talk to Castle, the doorman had said that there hadn't been anyone home for hours. Her next thought had been to call and explain to him over the phone, but every time it had gone straight to voicemail.

With a sigh of defeat, she had given the cab driver her apartment address, having the dawning realization that maybe he had finally had enough. It had almost been poetic justice. Right when she had given up on the article, Castle had given up on her.

It had served her right.

The elevator ride up to her floor only provided her with more time to obsess on all the missed opportunities and how, as usual, she had picked her job over the possibility of more with someone. Yet, Castle wasn't just someone. He could've been _the_ someone.

Could've. Would've. Should've.

That was her life story.

Shuffling down the hallway, she watched her feet trudge against the tile, disappointment in herself draining all the energy from her body. This was why she was always alone. She had protected her heart because she was bound to mess up any relationship she'd ever attempt.

"I was wondering if you'd ever get home…"

The one voice she hadn't expected to hear broke through her self-deprecating monologue.

"Cas-Castle?" she asked, her voice shaking from nerves. He was leaning against her doorway with his hands jammed into his pockets. "But I tried to call you?"

"I figured this was the sort of thing that needed to be done face to face."

She stared up at him with her mouth partially hanging open, unable to think of anything to say after spending the last couple hours thinking about everything she had ever wanted to tell him. He hadn't given up yet.

There was still a hope.

Pulling her keys from her messenger bag, she fumbled with the lock for a minute and then turned back to look up at him. Her heart raced as she hesitated to make any further movements. He was giving her another chance and if she didn't focus on using words, the shot would slip through her fingertips.

"Do you want to come in for coffee, Castle?"

"I thought you'd never ask," he said, a teasing glint dancing in his eyes as she held open the door for him. She wouldn't fool herself into thinking everything was fine; she was far smarter than that. Behind the smirk and the sarcasm she saw his determination for the truth.

This was it. She wanted it to be real with him, to hell with the article. With a deep breath, Kate reached for his hand and walked him over to the couch. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and gnawed for a moment, considering everything that needed to be said. He was man that she wanted a future with, if he'd let her. Kate entwined her fingers within his and gave him a small squeeze. Courage finally eased its way into her system, allowing her to look back up at his face.

"Castle, listen. I owe you an explanation-"

"I was dating you because of a bet," he blurted out before she could say anything further. It felt like she had been punched in the gut with words she hadn't ever expected to come from his lips. Ice water flushed through her veins as she pulled her hand away from him in shock.

None of it had been real.

* * *

 _ **tbc**_

 _Thank you for reading! I would love to hear from you!_

 _xoxo_

 _Thanks to team beta for looking this over and for the extra love and support_


	9. Secrets and Lies

_._

* * *

 ** _North Star_**

* * *

 _Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 9**_

Kate stood up and stalked into her kitchen. Coffee - that was why he was here in her apartment in the first place. They were here to talk over coffee, but now alcohol seemed like a more appropriate choice.

"So this whole thing has been some sort of joke to you?" she asked, calling over her shoulder before jumping back when she found him standing closer than she had thought. Leaning against the kitchen counter, he scoffed and rolled his eyes at her question.

"Wow. That's rich, Kate. Hi, Pot. Meet Kettle."

"That's why – that's why you never broke up with me this entire time?" Realization washed over her mind, it all made sense now. "Throughout it all, you stayed because of a bet," she spat, hurt and betrayal clouding her vision.

"What about you, _Beckett_ ," he sneered, backing her against the stove causing the dials to dig into her back as the heat from his presence flushed her skin. "Why the act? One minute you're every man's dream, sexy and confident, and the next you're a caricature of someone that belongs in an asylum."

"It was all for a story." The words stuttered from her lips as her heart pounded in her chest, entirely too aware of the slow press of his body crowding her further into the appliance.

"A story? Didn't I answer enough with our first interview?"

"Not that sort of story, Castle," she huffed, meeting his eye, willing confidence back into her voice. His confession may have surprised her, but she wouldn't let that stop her from holding her own. "Showing women that their behavior could be the reason they're single…How to get a guy to break up with you…"

"Only I never broke up with you." His mouth stretched into a self satisfied grin as she felt his breath tickling her cheek. A small shiver ran down her spine, the movement enough that Castle took notice, causing a rich chuckle to wash over the shell of her ear.

Smug bastard.

"Because of your _bet_ ," she shot, shoving him back - without any real force. His eyes turned dark with arousal, staring down at her and in that moment, she knew she was about to do something stupid. Castle slid back, slinking his arms around her waist as she ran her hands over his shoulders before practically clawing at his neck.

"Exactly. Just the bet," he whispered, his lips almost brushing against hers as he spoke.

"Screw your bet." Her voice was nearly a growl to close the space, slamming her mouth onto his as she combed through his hair to pull him down.

"Screw your story." The words were hot gasps searing her delicate skin, while his fingers toyed with the fabric of her shirt before traveling past her hips down the back of her toned thighs.

She allowed it to happen, her body moving faster than her mind as her hands and lips touched and teased on their own volition. All she could do was feel the scorching heat of his mouth against her skin and realize that she needed more. They had confessed their sins and yet, they were still here, wrapping themselves up in the web they'd weaved.

"Bed. _Now_."

"Or…"

"We'll end up on the kitchen floor and that's far less comfortable."

That was one way to solve an argument.

* * *

They had barely made it onto her mattress, but it had been worth the wait. All the anger and irritation had transformed into a round of heat and passion. Well three rounds to be exact... She smiled at the memory of his hands and lips setting her skin ablaze.

"One thing's for sure, you definitely didn't seem to be acting then," he chuckled, as she nuzzled closer against the broad span of his chest.

"Not acting at all," she giggled, her mouth stretching into a wide grin before smearing open mouth kisses along his skin.

"Didn't think so. You're not that good of an actress." Kate's head shot up and he smirked as glared up at him.

Such an ass.

"I'm good enough to fool you."

"Fool me? Hardly. I was on to you," he defended, reaching up to bring her down for a slow, lazy kiss. He was trying to distract her, but it wouldn't work.

"Didn't seem like it," she argued, her nose brushing against his as she leaned back down to claim him.

"Oh, but I was…" he mumbled with the kiss. So apparently sex was out of the question right now. It was just as well, they needed to have a real conversation about the mess that had been their faux relationship.

"When did you figure it out?" She propped herself up with her elbow, tracing her fingertips along his jaw line.

"The movie was a red flag. Your face had a cute little flush of embarrassment to it," he teased.

"It did not!" She felt heat warming her cheeks again, thinking back to that evening. At least he had been suspicious and hadn't thought she normally acted that absurd.

"You enjoyed that?"

"Well no. You're right. That was humiliating." Kate took a deep breath and leaned forward to hide her face, burrowing between the pillow and his shoulder.

"So why was this article worth all of the trouble?" Castle ran his hand through the tangled curls of her long strands. When she didn't move, he nudged her back onto the sheets so she was facing him. "After what we just did, I don't think it's because you wanted to torture me…"

"Well maybe not torture," she said, with a wink. He arched his eyebrow in question. Maybe later she could show him her set of handcuffs that she received once as a gag gift. She wouldn't mind having him cuffed to her bed for a little while…

"The article?" he asked, snapping her out of her daydream. She sighed and squeezed her eyes shut. He wasn't letting this go.

"It's complicated…" Meeting his gaze, she offered him a small smile and carded her fingers through his hair that decorated his forehead.

"I can handle complicated."

She nodded, considering his words, but even if he could handle it, what if she couldn't handle him knowing the truth? "What about you? Why was the bet so important?"

"You're avoiding my question, but to answer yours—the bet wasn't important. You were."

Damn. How could he do that? How could he make her feel at ease even when her mind was a jumbled mess?

"Even when I was acting like a train wreck?"

"That's the point. You were acting like a train wreck, you weren't actually one. Those glimmers of who you really are, the pieces that you allowed me to see... You're beautiful, Kate."

Always the writer, he was such a sap. It didn't matter. His words shot straight to her heart causing her pulse to thrum and her mouth stretch wide into a grin.

"You're not so bad yourself, Castle."

Leaning forward to pull him into her for a kiss, she played with the fine hairs at the base of his neck as she swallowed back a soft moan. Castle's touch feathered down her arms, before he paused to lightly squeeze her bicep and ease her back.

"We need to—"

"Talk. Right," she huffed, rolling over and rubbing the heels of her hands onto her eyelids. This was going nowhere fast. "Castle, it's about my mom."

"What is?"

"The article. Why I was so dedicated to it…" The words spilled from her mouth, frantic and uncertain. She hadn't known him for long and she kept her personal life closely guarded around her heart, but right now, in this moment, he made her feel safe, protected. "If I went through with this article, I was cleared to write an article that could potentially expose the conspiracy related to her murder."

" _Kate_ …I had no idea…"

"It's fine," she whispered, forcing a smile and blinking back the tears that typically would form when her mother's murder was mentioned.

"No, it's not."

"You're right." She nodded, chewing down on the inside of her cheek. "It's not, but I've learned to live with it. I just- I'm sorry, Castle. I hurt you all because of this drive inside me to uncover the truth."

"Hey, don't apologize. Not over something as important as your family. My humiliation pales in comparison."

"Your humiliation?" She choked out a laugh, moving up to sit up. "Pretty sure I was the one humiliating myself…"

"At least you're cute while you're doing it." Castle's hand slid under the covers, tickled her waist, and drew her back toward him.

"Past tense," she said as she shook her head. "I'm done. I'm not going through with the article."

"You have to." He shot up, propping himself against the headboard and bringing her into his lap to face him.

"No. I'll find another way to get justice for my mom."

"I could talk to my friends at the Twelfth Precinct. Maybe they could do something with your research?"

"I-I don't know about that…"

"I'd trust Ryan and Esposito with my life. They're good people." He pulled her into his arms further, wrapped her up in the strength of his embrace, pressed against the warmth of his chest. This was what she needed. She couldn't think about her mom anymore. She couldn't even think about what would happen to her career when she finally told Gates that she wasn't going to finish the piece. Right now, all she wanted to do was relish in the fact that the lies were exposed.

"I'll think about it. In the meantime, looks like you won your bet."

"I'm forfeiting." His breath washing over the top of her head as his hands ran down the notches of her spine. It was hypnotic.

The way he touched her, it was like he had known her for years. Knowing exactly the places to massage or tease, he was magic. "So this is real? No more games?" she asked, with a sigh, her body relaxed against his.

"No more games. It's just a shame that you went through all that work and you're not even going to write the article," he mused. Wiggling from his arms, she leaned up, bracketing his hips with her thighs, rocking forward to pull a groan from his lips.

"It's a shame that you killed our love fern, but life goes on," she teased, moving forward to run her lips along the stubble on his jaw. She was done talking.

"Where in the world did you even get the idea for that?" His question was breathless, as her tongue and teeth continued their path, moving down his body. She giggled against his skin. His eyes widened at her as he watched her disappear under the covers, moaning when she reached her destination.

"Saw it in a movie once," she husked, her breath washing between his thighs.

They were definitely done talking.

* * *

 _ **tbc**_

 _Thank you so much for reading! Words cannot express how much I love the outpouring of support I've received with this story. xoxo. I love every single message. Thank you!_

.

 _Special thanks to my beta squad. You girls are fabulous._


	10. Epilogue

_A/N: at end_

* * *

 ** _North Star_**

* * *

 _Katherine Beckett is the city's most influential women's self help journalist. What happens when she becomes more involved in her next story than she initially intended? A Caskett AU story based on "How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days" for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon_

* * *

 **Epilogue**

"Bullshit."

She couldn't stop the little ring of laughter from slipping out of her mouth after she uttered the word. This game had been going on forever, but little by little she had been able to chip away at the cards in her hand.

Castle's hand however wasn't faring as well.

"Excuse me?" he asked, turning to arch his eyebrow at her as she bit down on her lipstick stained bottom lip. Well, if he wasn't going to admit defeat, she'd have to be a little more forceful.

"You heard me," she said, giggling as she poked her finger at the plaid shirt covering his chest. " _Bullshit_. I call bullshit…"

" _Kate_ ," Castle whined, as she held back her laugh, covering her smile with her fingertips. He grumbled some more and reached forward to pick up the discarded pile of cards. The move now doubled the stack in his hand.

"Ooo, I like this one, Kiddo. She can call you out on your bullshit. Pun intended," Martha said, as her hand affectionately squeezed Kate's forearm.

They had been surprised when his mother crashed their weekend away at the Hamptons, but aside from this game of cards, she had barely made her presence known. She hadn't wanted to interrupt the 'new lovers' as she had called them upon her arrival. Castle tried to stop his mother from making the situation anymore uncomfortable from that point on and whatever he said to Martha had worked because she had made herself scarce almost this entire weekend.

After a day and a half of lounging by the pool and walking throughout town alone, this game was the first real moment they had spent together with Martha.

"Don't let her fool you, Mother. I can call her out on hers as well." He leaned over and brushed a kiss against her temple, warming her cheeks with the act.

"Funny," Kate said, tickling his side before she threw down a couple more cards.

"That remains to be seen," Martha stated, studying them as Castle tried to sneak a glance at the cards in Kate's hand.

"Ha!" She stuck her tongue out at him and covered her hand when she caught wind of what he was trying to accomplish.

"I don't like the way that you two are already ganging up on me. You just met," he grumbled under his breath. It was cute, in a sad puppy sort of way. He had that same expression when she had met Alexis and they had teased his choice of breakfast foods. Honestly though, who in their right mind would like an omelet with chocolate and marshmallows?

"Doesn't matter. It's nice to see someone keeping you on your toes."

"No, he's right, Martha. He keeps me on mine as well," Kate said, smiling.

It was true. Over a month had passed since the lies and games were brought to light and in that time Castle had become a constant in her life. He had been her shoulder to cry on if she needed it, but more importantly he had brought joy back into her world. She couldn't recall a time that she had ever felt more alive. She had to give Madison and Lanie some of the credit, in their weird way, they had helped her get to this place where she was now falling head over heels for this man.

The article that started it all had never been published. Gates hadn't been happy to say the least, but a temporary moment of compassion had allowed Kate to keep her job. She had been on thin ice with her editor through a couple of deadlines and she had struggled with pitch after pitch to make up for the disaster her last assignment had been. After a dry spell with ideas, Castle had turned into Kate's biggest ally. He gave her the occasional silly idea for articles that her boss had ended up loving. He had turned into her muse, in more ways than one.

Yet even with all the happiness brought on by their relationship, her past was clouding it all. He could have given up on her, anyone else would have. Anyone else would have told her that she had to move on, but instead he had helped her.

Castle had encouraged her to with work with his detective friends at the Twelfth Precinct to reopen her mother's case. With all the prior evidence she had found, Ryan and Esposito concluded that her mother's death had nothing to do with random gang violence as the initial detectives had labeled it. They had given her hope and that was something she had hardly ever felt when it came to this dark spot in her past. However, everywhere she looked, the shadows had started to disappear from his light.

Her life was finally falling into place.

She discarded the last card in her hand and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before throwing her arms up in victory. Maybe she shouldn't gloat, but when she found out that his family took this particular card game so seriously, she was determined to get her name on their famous chalkboard turned scoreboard.

"Dammit!" he shouted with a chuckle as he threw down his cards.

"Oh, don't be such a sore loser, Richard," Martha said, elbowing the pouting man-child Kate called her boyfriend.

"I hardly ever lose," he scoffed. She continued her mini victory dance as she walked over to the chalkboard to add her name and the single white tally mark beneath it, one of many to come in the future, she predicted.

"Well get used to it, Castle. You're reign is coming to an end," Kate called over her shoulder, not realizing how close he was until he laced his arms around her waist and pulled her against his chest.

"And you dedicated _You're So Vain_ to me at the bar last night. I think it would've been more appropriate to dedicate it to yourself," he whispered a breaths length apart, keeping the conversation between the two of them.

"Maybe I'm bragging a bit, but my celebration is not the definition of vanity. Pride, maybe? But vanity…?" She laughed for a second before looking up to tease him further. "You of all people should know what that means, because _you're_ so vain..." Kate gave him a quick wink as he leaned forward to nip at the skin under her jaw.

"I bet you think this song is about you, don't you, don't you," he sang, moving his lips against her ear.

"I'm not going to sing with you," she laughed, twisting around to press a quick kiss to the corner of his mouth.

"Maybe not now." He paused as she squirmed out of his arms to help Martha clean up. "We can work on it, add some dance steps and it could be a routine." Castle smirked and his eyebrows danced at the suggestion. The sight of this loveable, goofy man made her to nearly bark out a laugh.

"Leave the poor girl alone, Richard. I don't want you scaring this one off," Martha advised, stacking up the plates from their lunch before walking into the house.

"Don't worry. It would take a lot more than that to scare me off."

"I'd sure hope so," he said, pulling her back into his embrace. "At least give me another ten days to try."

"Not funny, Castle." She smiled and pushed up on her toes to claim his mouth with her own.

* * *

 _ **The end.**_

 _Words cannot express how grateful I am for each and every one of you readers and all your lovely reviews. I wouldn't be writing or posting if it wasn't for your constant support!_

 _This story was a fun challenge trying to weave enough of the movie into the plot to make it seem similar to that story while still trying to make it feel like an AU version of Castle & Beckett that we know and love. Hopefully I accomplished that!_

 _Thanks to my lovely friends and betas for their constant love and support and occasional sarcastic comment. You guys are fabulous._

 _xoxo_


End file.
